To believe the existence of God because of the
results which have a sensible reason behind it but not explained yet because of
the gaps in the human knowledge, is called as the “God of the Gaps” by
westerners. As an example, we can give the beliefs of the people who were living
in the Middle Ages about the existence of God with thinking that the sky matters
were being moved by the angels. It had not been clearly understood that this
situation was not true until Newton explained his laws of movement.

If Koran was written 1400 years ago and if it was the
sentence of a person who was conditioned to see God everywhere he looked at, we
have to see the signs of this situation in Koran exactly.

THE WAYS OF EXPLAINING AN EVENT

There are 3 ways of explaining an event:

Necessity

Chance

Design

Necessity: These are the events which can
be explained by the Laws of Nature. For example, remaining of the cloud in the
air… Because of being lighter than the air, or rather its specific weight is
lower than the specific weight of the air; it can remain in the air.

Chance: It is the way of explaining an
event which can not be explained by a law of nature directly. For example, “the
turning over and over of the wind”… The turning over and over of the wind is
completely a chaotic process. The winds can blow in different directions and in
different intensity because of various conditions.

We do not imply that these types of systems
completely mean disorder and also are completely independent from the Laws of
Nature with starting from the words of “Chaotic” and “Chance”. The chaotic
systems are the systems which “are excessively sensitive against the beginning
conditions” and because of this situation, it is too hard to estimate the
results of them, although it is not impossible. This situation is known as the
“Butterfly Effect”. The Butterfly effect expresses that the fluttering its wings
of a butterfly causes little changes in the atmosphere, thus a tornado can exist
(or not). Here, the fluttering its wings of a butterfly, expresses a little
change in the beginning conditions of the system (atmosphere). Even this little
change can affect the result of the system with causing a series of events.

The atmosphere events, the solar system and the
movements of the earth’s surface layers can be included among these types of
systems.

Of course, it can be said that showing all these as
an example is falling into a kind of “God of the Gaps” fallacy, with starting
from the relation of the “chaotic” systems with the laws of nature. But here, it
is interesting that Koran only presents the chaotic systems or designs as an
example and when it will present the things as an example which is directly the
laws of nature, it especially avoids from explaining it by saying “God does
this”.

Design: The events which can not be
explained by the laws of nature or by chance, are in this category. The points
where it is separated from the chance are both the it's incredibly small
realization possibility and the fact that an “aim” can be seen in it. For
example, the suitable structures of the birds to fly…

After “much ado about nothing”, we can make our
distinction clear between necessity and chance/design by saying that “an event
is an example of chance/design if you can not eliminate chance from the
explanation of it at all”.

Infact you can not eliminate chance from
the explanation of anything at all. But human beings tend to think by means of
abstractions. When we see a cause-effect relationship, we call it a necessity by
ignoring all the parameters that make up the cause. And scientists try to go all
the way down to the big-bang by following the cause-effect relationships and
hope to find just one parameter to explain everything with it. But then how will
they explain that solely one parameter. Most probably with chance!

In this article, we will see that Koran
also makes use of abstractions. For example, when referring to “sending water
down from the skies”, after a certain point in the chain of events, Koran
presents the last step (“rain”) as a necessity. So, do not get confused with
what is infact a necessity or chance or design. Just remember that Koran is a
book sent for human beings and it has to stick to the same abstraction
principles as of human mind, and it calls an event as necessity if there is a
certain cause-effect relationship in it by accepting all the parameters that
make up the cause as given.

ABOUT THE METHOD AND THE VERSES OF THE KORAN WHICH WERE CHOSEN

This article was written to show that it was not
fallen into “God of the Gaps” fallacy in the Koran. Well then, what kind of a
method will be followed to show this? First of all, in an anthem book like the
Koran, we have to accept that we will of course see verses in which God says “I
perform this” for the things which are infact a “necessity”. It will be
foolishness not to expect this. (Here, we mean the things which can be explained
by a law of nature when we say “necessity”). Because, the Creator will of course
say that “I created”, the Designer will of course say that “I designed”. Being a
necessity of something, namely being explained by a law of nature directly can
not change the reality of its being created by God. Thus, it does not mean the
falling into “God of Gaps” fallacy even if there are some verses like these in
the Koran (as long as they are not presented as “signs”).

Well then, finding what kinds of verses in the Koran
means to fall into “God of the Gaps” fallacy? The answer of this question is
hidden in the “necessity”… But, with an important point: If, in the Koran,
anything arising from the necessity was shown as a sign for the existence
of God without indicating that it is infact a necessity in any way, then it
means Koran was fallen into the “God of the Gaps” fallacy.

Consequently, the verses which we will examine are
the verses which were said as “there are proofs (or lessons or signs or
remembrance) in this for the thinkers (for human mind)” by God or simply the
verses in which God presents the events and the creatures to the human mind
as the proofs (or signs …) of his existence/unity.

Well, which things are we waiting from God to be
shown the proofs of his existence/unity and what kinds of things save the Koran
to fall into the “God of the Gaps” fallacy? The answer of this is hidden in
explaining the existence of any thing… As it was explained in the previous part,
the existence of a thing can be explained in 3 ways: Necessity, Chance and
Design… Then, we expect the thing which was presented by God as the proof of his
existence/unity must hardly be a sample which can be explained either by the
“chance” or by the “design”.

Of course, in a verse of Koran, there can be some
things which can be explained both by chance, design and “necessity” which are
presented as the proofs of God’s existence/unity. The natural flow of the
subject may necessitate this. But, in this situation we are expecting that God
will express that this thing is a necessity, without saying that “it happens
because I did it”.

Let us explain our subject with an example, the 57th
verse of Araf sura (section) of the Koran.

Araf-57

And He it is Who sends forth the winds bearing good
news before His mercy, until, when they bring up a laden cloud, We drive it to a
dead land, then We send down water on it, then bring forth with it of fruits of
all kinds; thus shall We bring forth the dead that you may be mindful.

This verse is suitable for us to work on it because
in this verse God is presenting some samples as the proofs to human
intelligence. The verse starts with saying “And
He it is Who sends forth the winds bearing good news before His mercy”.
We are asking right now: Is “the sending of the winds” a necessity? Of course
not! The blowing of the winds is a chaotic process which completely based on the
chance. The verse is continuing with “until,
when they bring up a laden cloud”. Here, this
is a necessity. “The carrying of the clouds by the winds” can easily be
explained by the natural law of lightness of the clouds than the air. The
interesting part of this situation is that the Koran is expressing this as a
necessity, too. Attention, the Koran is not saying that this is “realized by the
God”. On the contrary, Koran emphasizes that this is a necessity! The verse is
continuing as “We drive it to a dead land, and
then We send down water on it”. “Sending the
clouds to a dead land and bringing down water there is completely a chaotic
process which is based on chance. Here, it will be better to tell about an
important method to define the chance. If an event can happen “in another way”,
then that means it is based on chance. Here, “the sending of the cloud to a dead
land” can happen in another way and also the “raining there”, too… The clouds
can never come to that country or they can but without the rain. The verse is
continuing with saying “then bring forth with it
of fruits of all kinds”. This event is neither
a necessity nor a chance. Well then, what is it? Of course, the “design”… God
lets those plants to reproduce themselves from their seeds by the help of the
rain and this is one of his designs, namely, it is related with the genetic
programme which was placed in its seed by God. The verse is ending with saying “thus
shall We bring forth the dead that you may be mindful”.
The “we will take out the deads like this” part of the verse is not an example
to take lessons, but news about the future.

In this single verse of the Koran, we see that the
“chance”, the “necessity” and the”design” were used in a proper way and it was
especially avoided from the “God of the Gaps” fallacy. Here, in the rest of this
article, we will examine the other verses like this one under this frame of
logic and we will try to prove that there is no “God of the Gaps” fallacy in the
Koran. But, we will not explain the expressions again and again in every verse,
which were explained before.

Besides, we have to explain this, too: from our point
of view, the way of expressing the events, as they are presented to give a sign
about the existence/unity of God, which can be explained either by chance or by
design is not important. Namely, it does not change anything for us whether it
is being said “We are sending the clouds to a dead country” or “the clouds are
going to a dead country”. If it is once presented as “making of God” in a
“sign” verse, then it is always taken as “making of God”. The only thing
which is important for us is not to find a phrase like “God is directly doing
this” in Koran when referring to a “necessity” as it is presented to give a sign
about the existence/unity of God.

Another important point is related with the things
which are “necessities: A necessary event, or rather an order which arises from
a necessity, can not be used as a proof for the existence of God, but can be
used as a proof for the “uniqueness” of God. For example, the “lower specific
weight of the cloud than the air” which helps the cloud remaining in the air,
and “the gravity force which prevents the cloud from escaping to space” and “the
buoyancy feature of the air” is the proof of their creation by a “unique” God!

Now, let us start to examine the verses which are
related with our subject. While doing this, we firstly will indicate the
verse(s) and then we will try to explain them.

Nahl/79 and “Design”

Nahl/79
Do they not look at the birds, held poised in the midst of the sky? Nothing
holds them up but Allah. Verily in this are signs for those who believe.

In this verse, it was said that the birds are kept by
God in the sky. This situation is not unbelievable although it seems so. The
staying of the birds in the sky is not a necessity, but the result of a design.
Thus, the one who keeps them in the sky is only the God! This verse is clearly a
design argument.

“Command”

Nahl-12
He has made subject to you the Night and the Day; the sun and the moon; and the
stars are in subjection by His Command: verily in this are Signs for men
who are wise.

Rum-25

And
among His Signs is this, that heaven and earth stand by His Command: then
when He calls you, by a single call, from the earth, behold, ye (straightway)
come forth.

Rum-46
Among His Signs is this, that He sends the Winds, as heralds of Glad Tidings,
giving you a taste of His Mercy,- that the ships may sail by His Command
and that ye may seek of His Bounty: in order that ye may be grateful.

In these 3 verses it was emphasized that events are
directed by God with the intervention of the things known as the “laws of the
nature”, by the usage of the word “command”. In these verses, the usage of the
word “command” and not saying that “God is doing” directly is so meaningful…

“Grace” and “Command”

Luqman-31

Seest
thou not that the ships sail through the ocean by the Grace of Allah?-
that He may show you of His Signs? Verily in this are Signs for all who
constantly persevere and give thanks.

In this
verse it is told that “ships are sailing with the grace of God”. If carefully
read it will be easy to catch that it is not stated as float. Floating is based
on the laws of nature. But the sailing is bound to this law of nature and the
“grace”. This “grace” is the wind. Blowing of the wind is an example of the
chaotic order and having this chaotic order as a benefit to human beings is a
grace of God. The verse below is referring to the “command” of God for the
buoyancy of water and its importance in this matter.

Rum-46

Among
His Signs is this, that He sends the Winds, as heralds of Glad Tidings, giving
you a taste of His Mercy,- that the ships may sail by His Command and
that ye may seek of His Bounty: in order that ye may be grateful.

Night and Day

Nur-44
It is Allah Who alternates the Night and the Day: verily in these things is an
instructive example for those who have vision!

Furqan-62

And
it is He Who made the Night and the Day to follow each other: for such as desire
to be mindful or to show their gratitude.

Naml-86

See
they not that We have made the Night for them to rest in and the Day to give
them light? Verily in this are Signs for any people that believe!

Yunus-6

Verily, in the alternation of the night and the day, and in all that Allah hath
created, in the heavens and the earth, are Signs for those who fear Him.

Yunus-67

He it
is that hath made you the night that ye may rest therein, and the day to make
things visible (to you). Verily in this are Signs for those who listen (to His
Message).

Nahl-12
He has made subject to you the Night and the Day; the sun and the moon; and the
stars are in subjection by His Command: verily in this are Signs for men who are
wise.

Ali İmran-190

Behold! In the creation of the heavens and the earth, and the alternation of
night and day,- there are indeed Signs for men of understanding,

Casiye-5

And
in the alternation of Night and Day, and the fact that Allah sends down
Sustenance from the sky, and revives therewith the earth after its death, and in
the change of the winds,- are Signs for those that are wise.

“The coming of the night and day one after another”
is not a necessity. Actually, there is no need to look for an answer by the help
of our intelligence. The answer is standing upwards in the sky. The people who
have knowledge about the Moon, the satellite of the World, all know that one
surface of the Moon is never seen from the World, because of the same time
periods of the turning of the Moon around itself and turning of it around the
World. If the same situation was valid for the World and the Sun, one surface of
the world would always be in daylight, namely daytime, and the other surface
would always be dark, namely the night. But, this situation is not valid for the
World and both the night and the day are continuously following each other in a
time period of 24 hours. Of course, there are reasons of this situation. But,
these reasons are never “necessities”, and a clear mind can see God behind this
or a disbeliever can explain this by chance.

Besides, the Koran already explains the thing from
which you can draw a lesson: the perfect harmony of the night and daytime
periods with the living creatures! If the night and daytimes are like the ones
in the Mercury, namely a daytime is equal to a time of over 50 days, then what
can we do?

The orientation of the Winds

Sura-33

If it
be His Will, He can still the Wind: then would they become motionless on
the back of the (ocean). Verily in this are Signs for everyone who patiently
perseveres and is grateful.

Rum-46
Among His Signs is this, that He sends the Winds, as heralds of Glad
Tidings, giving you a taste of His Mercy,- that the ships may sail by His
Command and that ye may seek of His Bounty: in order that ye may be grateful.

In these verses, the purpose of using the expression
of the orientation of the winds is the resign of a benefit for the people from
this chaotic system as it was said in these verses again, and this is not a
necessity.

Bakara/164

Bakara-164

Behold! in the creation of the heavens and the earth; in the alternation of the
night and the day; in the sailing of the ships through the ocean for the profit
of mankind; in the water which Allah Sends down from the skies, and the life
which He gives therewith to an earth that is dead; in the beasts of all kinds
that He scatters through the earth; in the change of the winds, and the clouds
which they trail like their slaves between the sky and the earth;- (Here) indeed
are Signs for a people that are wise.

“in the creation of the heavens and the earth”:
is certainly not a necessity.

“in the alternation of the night and the day”:
as we showed before, is not a necessity.

“in the sailing of the ships through the ocean
for the profit of mankind”: NECESSITY (and
Grace)! The ships flow on the sea by the help of the buoyancy of water. It is
interesting that the Koran did not say “God performs it” for this event! (also
look at the “Grace and Command” section)

“in the water which Allah Sends down from the
skies, and the life which He gives therewith to an earth that is dead; in the
beasts of all kinds that He scatters through the earth; in the change of the
winds”: none of them are the necessities as we
show before. For example, the creation of the animals is a design but the
changing of the winds is chaotic process based on the chance.

“and the clouds which they trail like their
slaves between the sky and the earth”:
NECESSITY! The cloud is resting between the sky and the earth because of its
specific weight is lighter than the air. The Koran left this event as a
necessity also and did not say “God performs it”!

In this verse, the chance, the necessity
and the design were used in a way that we expect, namely without falling into
the “God of Gaps” fallacy! (Note: As we mentioned before, anything which is a
necessity can be used as a proof for the “uniqueness” of God.)

Zumar/21

Zumar-21

Seest
thou not that Allah sends down water from the sky, and leads it through springs
in the earth? Then He causes to grow, therewith, produce of various colors: then
it withers; thou wilt see it grow yellow; then He makes it dry up and crumble
away. Truly, in this, is a Message of remembrance to men of understanding.

This
verse needs a special analysis. The phrase “He
causes to grow, therewith, produce of various colors” is clearly a design
argument. The verse goes on as “and
leads it through springs in the earth”. Is the build up of the
underground water resources a necessity?

One quotation of a text that I found on the internet
about the underground water reservoirs says ”In order to collect underground
water resources it is very important to give water the chance to penetrate
beneath the surface by means of cracks and similar openings in the upper levels
of soil. Exactly here there is another miracle of creation to be witnessed
because the upper surface of soil constitutes of such a kind of sandy layers so
that water can easily penetrate below the surface into the deep until it hits
another kind of soil which isargillaceous soil. This type of soil serves as a
boundary to water and prevents it from diffusing further to the ground and
enabling it to collect.” As seen sandy soil and argil have great importance to
the underground water reservoirs. According to Wikipedia:“Sand is a
granular material
made up of fine rock particles most commonly quartz. Sand is a naturally
occurring, finely divided
rock, comprising
particles or granules ranging in size up to 2
millimeters.”
Its most important element is silicon
and no one can say that having the element silicon on earth is a necessity.
You can trust to this comment. I have just remembered the following verse of
Koran:

Hadid/25
We sent aforetime our messengers with Clear Signs and sent down with them the
Book and the Balance (of Right and Wrong), that men may stand forth in justice;
and We sent down Iron, in which is great might, as well as many benefits
for mankind, that Allah may test who it is that will help, Unseen, Him and His
messengers: For Allah is Full of Strength, Exalted in Might.

The
verse continues as “then
it withers; thou wilt see it grow yellow; then He makes it dry up and crumble
away”. Drying up and dying of plants is a result of a design. In order to
clarify the design lets look at this quote from the encyclopedia Britannica:
“In summer, plants make and store food in their roots, stems, or seeds. In
winter, they rest. Plants pass the winter in various ways. Annuals flower in the
same season that they are planted. Then, transferring all their reserve food
to their seeds, the plants wither and die”. Meaning that, they die
because they are designed to transfer their reserve food to their seeds. This
explains the phrase “then He makes it dry up and
crumble away”. It is again an argument from design. But more interesting
is that the yellowing, withering part is left as a necessity in the verse.
Infact it is a necessity that drying plants will wither and become yellow.

Nur/43-44

Nur/43-44
Seest thou not that Allah makes the clouds move gently, then joins them
together, then makes them into a heap? - then wilt thou see rain issue forth
from their midst. And He sends down from the sky mountain masses (of clouds)
wherein is hail: He strikes therewith whom He pleases and He turns it away from
whom He pleases, the vivid flash of its lightning well-nigh blinds the sight.

It is
Allah Who alternates the Night and the Day: verily in these things is an
instructive example for those who have vision!

The “making the clouds move”, “joining them together”
and “making them into a heap” are certainly not the necessities, but the chaotic
processes. But after the making of the heap, the arising of the rain from cloud
is a necessity. The verse emphasizes the arising of the rain as a necessity not
“made by God”, and thus does not attribute it to God by saying “then
wilt thou see rain issue forth from their midst”.
The “flash of the lightning” was also emphasized as a necessity similarly!

Nahl/13

Nahl-13
and the things on this earth which He has multiplied in varying colors (and
qualities): verily in this is a sign for men who are mindful.

In this verse, if it was said “God is painting” for
the colors, and if this was presented as a lesson, then it would be fallen into
“God of Gaps” fallacy. But, it is said that the colors was created / produced by
God.

Besides, in this verse, it can be clearly seen that
“a system arising from the necessity” was not emphasized… Namely, this verse was
not presented as a proof for the uniqueness of God; on the contrary it had to be
presented for the existence of him.

Well then, what is there in the colors to get a
lesson? Here, the important word is “zerae” which was translated as the
“multiply”… This word was used always for the living creatures namely the
plants, the animals and the human beings. Namely, the Koran presents an event of
design as a lesson again.

Rad/3

Rad-3
And it is He Who spread out the earth, and set thereon mountains standing firm
and (flowing) rivers: and fruit of every kind He made in pairs, two and two: He
draweth the night as a veil o'er the Day. Behold, verily in these things there
are Signs for those who consider!

In this verse, it is necessary to explain the 2
subjects because they are seen as the necessities which were emphasized as the
“made by God”. The first one “the spreading out of the world” is only possible
with taking a spherical shape. Taking a spherical shape is not a necessity. For
“becoming round” of a sky object, its mass must be greater than a definite size.
To tell the truth, this is not necessity.

For becoming round of a sky object, its diameter must
be 1000 km, at least. The diameter of the World is 7900 miles. Besides, the time
period of becoming round of a sky object is important, too. A sky object which
has a diameter of 1000 km will become round very slowly.

The second point is the formation of the mountains.
This is also not a necessity. There must be solid stratum in a planet for the
formation of the mountains and then these strata must be moving. Besides, the
turning of that planet around itself is also necessary for the formation of the
mountains, and none of these is a necessity.

Showing of the Lightning

Rum-24

And among His Signs, He shows you the lightning,
by way both of fear and of hope, and He sends down water from the sky and with
it gives life to the earth after it is dead: verily in that are Signs for those
who are wise.

Do you say that “Here, this is a mistake”? “He is not
showing the lightning, it is lightning because of the necessity”. All right, but
in this verse, it was not said that the “flasher” of the lightning, but it was
said that the “presenter” of it. Do you say that “he does not present, we see”?
Do not forget that, you can see by your eyes which are the designs of
him.

“Sending down water from the skies” and the Rain

Casiye-5

And in the alternation of Night and Day, and the fact
that Allah sends down Sustenance from the sky, and revives therewith the
earth after its death, and in the change of the winds,- are Signs for those that
are wise.

Bakara-164

Behold! in the creation of the heavens and the earth; in the alternation of the
night and the day; in the sailing of the ships through the ocean for the profit
of mankind; in the water which Allah Sends down from the skies, and the
life which He gives therewith to an earth that is dead; in the beasts of all
kinds that He scatters through the earth; in the change of the winds, and the
clouds which they trail like their slaves between the sky and the earth;- (Here)
indeed are Signs for a people that are wise.

Enam-99

It is He Who sendeth down water from the skies:
with it We produce vegetation of all kinds: from some We produce green (crops),
out of which We produce grain, heaped up (at harvest); out of the date-palm and
its sheaths (or spathes) (come) clusters of dates hanging low and near: and
(then there are) gardens of grapes, and olives, and pomegranates, each similar
(in kind) yet different (in variety): when they begin to bear fruit, feast your
eyes with the fruit and the ripeness thereof. Behold! In these things there are
Signs for people who believe.

Nahl-65

And Allah sends down water from the skies, and
gives therewith life to the earth after its death: verily in this is a Sign for
those who listen.

Taha-53-54 (In the
beginning of this verse, Moses talks to pharaoh, so don’t get confused with the
word “carpet”)

"He Who has, made for you the earth like a carpet
spread out; has enabled you to go about therein by roads (and channels); and
has sent down water from the sky." With it have We produced diverse pairs of
plants each separate from the others.

Eat (for yourselves) and pasture your cattle: verily,
in this are Signs for men endued with understanding.

Furqan/48-50

And He it is Who sends the winds as heralds of glad
tidings, going before His Mercy, and We send down pure water from the sky,-

That with it We may give life to a dead land, and slake
the thirst of things We have created,- cattle and men in great numbers.

And We have distributed the (water) amongst them, in
order that they may be mindful, but most men are averse (to aught) but (rank)
ingratitude.

Rum-24

And among His Signs, He shows you the lightning, by way
both of fear and of hope, and He sends down water from the sky and with
it gives life to the earth after it is dead: verily in that are Signs for those
who are wise.

Araf-57

And He it is Who sends forth the winds bearing good
news before His mercy, until, when they bring up a laden cloud, We drive it to a
dead land, then We send down water on it, then bring forth with it of
fruits of all kinds; thus shall We bring forth the dead that you may be mindful.

I used the À. Yusuf Ali’s translation for the above verses about water & rain.
But I changed his usage of the word “rain” in some verses to “water”. If you
look at M.H. SHAKIR’s translation, he always uses the
word “water” instead of “rain” in these verses. So, the usage of “rain” in Yusuf
Ali’s translation is his interpretation. And if you also look at the Turkish
translations, you will always find the word “water”, not the word “rain”.

By saying “sending water down from the sky” it is meant the whole process
of sending the clouds by the help of winds, routing the clouds to a specific
land, then piling them up and finally let it rain. From where do we know that?
Well, the phrase speaks for itself! But, continue to read!

God mentions about “sending down the water
from sky” in all of these verses, not “bringing down the rain” or “let it rain”!
Why is this so? Because, the “rain” is a word commonly used for the final step
of the bringing water down from the sky and it indicates a necessity.

Thus, if we look at the verse Luqman-34 which is not
delivered as a sign for human intelligence,

Luqman-34

Surely Allah is He with Whom is the knowledge of the
hour, and He sends down the rain and He knows what is in the wombs; and
no one knows what he shall earn on the morrow; and no one knows in what land he
shall die; surely Allah is Knowing, Aware,

we can clearly see the distinction that Koran made
between “sending down water from the sky” and the rain.

The following verses also explain Koran’s aim when
using the phrase “sending down water from skies”:

Furqan/48

And He it is Who sends the winds as heralds of glad
tidings, going before His Mercy, and We send down pure water from the sky,-

Hicr/22
And We send the winds fertilizing, and cause water to descend from the sky,
and give it you to drink. It is not ye who are the holders of the store thereof.
(PICKTHAL’s translation)

You are expected to see the link between the winds
and “sending water down from the skies”!

Nahl/65-66-67-69

Nahl-65

And
Allah sends down water from the skies, and gives therewith life to the earth
after its death: verily in this is a Sign for those who listen.

Nahl-66

And
verily in cattle (too) will ye find an instructive sign. From what is within
their bodies between excretions and blood, We produce, for your drink, milk,
pure and agreeable to those who drink it.

Nahl-67

And
from the fruit of the date-palm and the vine, ye get out strong drink and
wholesome food: behold, in this also is a sign for those who are wise.

Nahl-69

Then to eat of all the produce (of the earth), and
follow the ways of thy Lord made smooth: there issues from within their bodies a
drink of varying colors, wherein is healing for men: verily in this is a Sign
for those who give thought.

In all of these verses, the “design” is being
presented as a “lesson for the intelligence” and it is not being fallen into the
“God of the Gaps” fallacy.

The samples from the other verses in which there is no “God of the Gaps” fallacy

Taha-53/54

Who made the earth for you an expanse and made for you
therein paths and sent down water from the cloud; then thereby We have brought
forth many species of various herbs.

Eat and pasture your cattle; most surely there are
signs in this for those endowed with understanding.

Rum-22

And
one of His signs is the creation of the heavens and the earth and the diversity
of your tongues and colors; most surely there are signs in this for the learned.

Rum-24

And among His Signs, He shows you the lightning, by way
both of fear and of hope, and He sends down water from the sky and with it gives
life to the earth after it is dead: verily in that are Signs for those who are
wise.

Enam-99

And He it is Who sends down water from the cloud, then
We bring forth with it buds of all (plants), then We bring forth from it green
(foliage) from which We produce grain piled up (in the ear); and of the
palm-tree, of the sheaths of it, come forth clusters (of dates) within reach,
and gardens of grapes and olives and pomegranates, alike and unlike; behold the
fruit of it when it yields the fruit and the ripening of it; most surely there
are signs in this for a people who believe.

Araf-26

O ye
Children of Adam! We have bestowed raiment upon you to cover your shame, as well
as to be an adornment to you. But the raiment of righteousness,- that is the
best. Such are among the Signs of Allah, that they may receive admonition!

Nahl/10-11

It is
He Who sends down rain from the sky: from it ye drink, and out of it (grows) the
vegetation on which ye feed your cattle.

With
it He produces for you corn, olives, date-palms, grapes and every kind of fruit:
verily in this is a sign for those who give thought.

Mu'minun-21

And
in cattle (too) ye have an instructive example: from within their bodies We
produce (milk) for you to drink; there are, in them, (besides), numerous (other)
benefits for you; and of their (meat) ye eat;

Sura/7-8

Do
they not look at the earth,- how many noble things of all kinds We have produced
therein?

Verily, in this is a Sign: but most of them do not believe.

Rum-21

And among His Signs is this, that He created for you
mates from among yourselves, that ye may dwell in tranquility with them, and He
has put love and mercy between your (hearts): verily in that are Signs for those
who reflect.

Casiye-4

And
in the creation of yourselves and the fact that animals are scattered (through
the earth), are Signs for those of assured Faith.

Casiye-13

And
He has subjected to you, as from Him, all that is in the heavens and on earth:
behold, in that are Signs indeed for those who reflect.

Zuhruf-12/13

That has created pairs in all things, and has made for
you ships and cattle on which ye ride,

In order that ye may sit firm and square on their
backs, and when so seated, ye may remember the (kind) favor of your Lord, and
say, "Glory to Him Who has subjected these to our (use), for we could never be
able to do it,

Yasin-37

And a Sign for them is the Night: We withdraw there
from the Day, and behold they are plunged in darkness;

Zumar-42

It is Allah that takes the souls (of men) at death; and
those that die not (He takes) during their sleep: those on whom He has passed
the decree of death, He keeps back (from returning to life), but the rest He
sends (to their bodies) for a term appointed. Verily in this are Signs for those
who reflect.

Rad-4
and in the earth are tracts (diverse though) neighboring, and gardens of vines
and fields sown with corn, and palm trees - growing out of single roots or
otherwise: watered with the same water, yet some of them We make more excellent
than others to eat. Behold, verily in these things there are Signs for those who
understand!

All of the above verses are examples of argument from
design.

The verses which were possible to be fallen into the
“God of the Gaps” fallacy, but it did not become so.

The movement of the sky objects

Anbiya-33

It is
He Who created the Night and the Day, and the sun and the moon: all (the
celestial bodies) swim along, each in its rounded course.

Luqman-29

Seest
thou not that Allah merges Night into Day and he merges Day into Night; that He
has subjected the sun, and the moon (to His Law), each running its course for a
term appointed; and that Allah is well-acquainted with all that ye do?

Yasin-38

And
the Sun runs unto a resting place: that is the decree of (Him), the Exalted in
Might, the All-Knowing.

Yasin-40

It is not permitted to the Sun to catch up the Moon,
nor can the Night outstrip the Day: each (just) swims along in (its own) orbit
(according to Law).

In these verses, by meaning the movements of the sun
and the moon, it was expressed that they were “rendered at his disposal by God”.
But the surprising thing in here is the lack of usage of the expression of “made
by God” about the movements of the sun and the moon, and thus not being
presented as a proof of the existence/unity of God…

When we take into consideration the beliefs of the
people who were living in the Middle Ages, about the sky objects were being
moved by the angels and thought that there is God with starting from this point,
the importance of not being fallen into a fallacy like this in Koran can be more
easily comprehended.

Kaf/6-8

6- Do they not look at the sky above them?- How We have
made it and adorned it, and there are no flaws in it?
7- And the earth- We have spread it out, and set thereon mountains standing
firm, and produced therein every kind of beautiful growth (in pairs)-
8- For an insight and a reminder to every servant turning (to Allah).

“The fact
that there is no flaws in it” which is expressed within the verse is a
necessity. Within the verse this phrase is not referred to God and is used
solely on its own. But the making and adornment of the skies is definitely
referred to God. Actually the making of the skies and “adornment” (the term used
for the stars) of the sky is strongly bound to the parameters during the
creation of the universe. For example a slight difference in gravity constant or
the masses of electrons or protons would make it impossible today for us to talk
about stars. Scientists call this “thefine tuning of the universe”
and science could not yet prove that these specific parameters were as they were
because of necessity.

M. H.
Shakir’s translation of Kaf/6 is also very interesting:

Kaf/6 (M.H. Shakir)

Do they not then look up to heaven above them how We
have made it and adorned it and it has nogaps?

Well, no comment!
(PS: This is the solely one place in his translation of Koran that the word
“gap” is used – In Yusuf Ali’s translation the word “gap” never occurs.)

Explaining the “explanation”!

Rad/2
Allah is He Who raised the heavens without any pillars that ye can see;
then He established Himself on the Throne; He has subjected the sun and the
moon! Each one runs (its course) for a term appointed. He doth regulate all
affairs, explaining the signs in detail,
that ye may believe with certainty in the meeting with your Lord.

Yunus/5It is He Who made the sun to be a shining glory and the moon to be a light
(of beauty), and measured out stages for it; that ye might know the number of
years and the count (of time). Nowise did Allah create this but in truth and
righteousness. (Thus) doth He explain His
Signs in detail, for those who know.

Isra/12We have made the Night and the Day as two (of Our) Signs: the Sign of the
Night have We made dark, while the Sign of the Day We have made bright; that
ye may seek bounty from your Lord, and that ye may know the number and count of
the years: all things have We explained in
detail.

God said that “I am performing” for the things which
are the necessities (which I underlined) in these above verses and presented
them as “signs” for human intelligence. Eventually, we had fallen into the “God
of the Gaps” fallacy! But, is it really so? Here the word “explain” comes to our
help. The “explain” in these verses implies that human beings can not see the
“signs of Allah” directly from the events mentioned in these verses. Those kinds
of signs are hidden to our eyes, because they are necessities. So they need to
be explained!

Is there a need for further explanation!

More samples from the other verses which were
possible to be fallen into the “God of the Gaps” fallacy, but it did not become
so.

Rad/12
It is He Who doth show you the lightning, by way both of fear and of hope: It is
He Who doth raise up the clouds, heavy with (fertilizing) rain!

Luqman/10He created the heavens without any pillars that ye can see; He set on the
earth mountains standing firm, lest it should shake with you; and He scattered
through it beasts of all kinds. We send down rain from the sky, and produce on
the earth every kind of noble creature, in pairs.

God said that “I am performing” for the things which
are the necessities (which I underlined) in these verses, but neither in these
verses nor in the continuous ones, these events were not presented as the proofs
for the intelligence!

Conclusion-I

Think about the times of Koran’s revelation. Although
some claim that ancient Greeks knew even at those times that earth is spherical,
Koran’s claim is not that simple. During those ages, people were thinking that
the alternation of day and night was because of Sun’s movement around earth.
But, Koran states that Sun’s movement is a necessity while stating that the
alternation of day and night is a “sign” of God. That was certainly a
contradiction at those times. But as of today, we know that this is not a
contradiction but a truth. This situation implies that the Author of Koran is
aware of this situation and also is aware of earth’s spherical shape and of the
rotation of earth around itself and around sun (otherwise, the alternation of
day and night is impossible without falling into the contradiction that we
mentioned above!). This is not due to our imagination. Look at the following
verses of Koran:

Yasin/40

It is not permitted to the Sun to catch up the Moon,
nor can the Night outstrip the Day: each (just) swims along in (its own) orbit
(according to Law).

Anbiya/33

It is He Who created the Night and the Day, and the sun
and the moon: all swim along, each in its rounded course.

The word “each” and “all” in these verses
also cover the night and day. It implies that (themselves and the place of)
night and day (earth) also swims along their orbits. Arabic verb used in these
verses is also in a special plural form used for more than 2 objects.

Also look at the following:

Zumar/5

He created the heavens and the earth in true
(proportions): He makes the Night overlap the Day, and the Day overlap the
Night: He has subjected the sun and the moon (to His law): each one follows
a course for a time appointed. Is not He the Exalted in Power - He Who forgives
again and again?

The Arabic word for “overlap” is “yukevviru.” The
word is used to describe the act of wrapping a turban around someone’s head.
This verse implies the spherical shape of earth.

Being aware of earth’s spherical shape and seeing the
spherical shapes of sun and moon, and still insisting on that earth’s spherical
shape is a matter of chance/design! The Author is really aware of how
sky objects become spherical!

Conclusion-II

As you see, everything (necessity/chance/design) is
properly used in Koran. Everything is in its proper place just like the
universe. Every verse, and even the words, contributes to building a pattern.
And for me, understanding is seeing the patterns.

Today, there is no way other than embracing Quran to
be an intellectually full-filled believer. Quran is God’s answer to hopelessly
crying people of modern ages for a miracle to believe. Is it not interesting
finding a book like Quran playing with the “God of the Gaps” argument? And it is
certainly justice! Justice for people of modern ages who had not a chance to see
prophets performing their miracles! Justice for a time in which people bombarded
with atheist arguments!